... i just downloaded and watched "river of no return" ... i remember pa taking mike and me to see this movie at the post theater when we sere stationed at elmendorf air force base in anchorage, alaska ... i must have been 1958 or 1959, so the movie was probably in re-release, or, perhaps, it was just that the military wasn't always quite up to date in getting the "latest" in entertainment ... in the opening scene matt calder (robert mitchum) is cutting down a giant pine tree on top of a mountain, the background a sweeping downslope view of a beautiful rocky mountain valley ... the scene cuts to mitchum riding down the flank of the mountain to his little homestead situated alongside the fast flowing milky-white waters of an alpine river ...
... on the drive home after the movie i saw my brother's eyebrows furrow into the position which indicated some great thought was twisting 'round and 'round in his convoluted mind ...
... "pa, why would he be cutting down a single tree on the top of the mountain, then leave it to ride miles and miles to his house way down in the valley" ...
[... i wasn't quite sure why, but in that moment my brother reminded me of albert einstein ...]
... pa, pondering for but a brief moment, naturally, responded, "it was blocking his view" ...
... we accepted that, of course, absolutely, since in all such things pa was the authority ... at least, that is, for a short while it was fact ... later, our room a little darkened cave where the two of us practiced achieving some semblance of brotherly camaraderie, in muted voices we giggled and laughed until ma's pounding on the door reminded us that there were some things which eluded her sense of humor, especially when such banter was a serious violation of "lights out" rules ...
... "spoiling the view ... geezum ... spoiling the view ... where does he come up with that stuff ... how come we always fall for it ... he's not going to get us next time, nope, no way" ...
... but, of course, he did ... we always fell for it ... always ...
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